As an old-established world hegemon, the British had long since cultivated their pride over the past century.
After receiving Vienna Government's final ultimatum, the British members of Parliament, feeling that their dignity had been challenged, were uncharacteristically efficient and made their choice in the span of a single afternoon.
Once Parliament reached a consensus, on the evening of December 26, 1904, Edward VII issued a nationwide war mobilization order and formally declared war on the Holy Roman Empire.
Declaring war first might have been partly an act of spite! But more than that, it was a political necessity. The method might have been crude, but as long as it worked, that was enough.
The proud British were not afraid of this war, but that did not mean the allies clamoring along behind them felt the same way.
In fact, if not for the British Government's skillful methods—coaxing and deceiving the various countries onto the war chariot—they would never have joined in this excitement.
Ever since the Continental War ended, armies around the world that had originally studied the French Army had all turned around and begun studying the Holy Roman Empire Army.
Whether they had grasped its essence was another matter, but the Holy Roman Empire's influence had spread far and wide. This was especially true for the immigrant nations of the Americas that understood Holy Roman Empire history; the shock it delivered to their thinking was even greater.
Only the ignorant were fearless. Sometimes, knowing too much was not necessarily a good thing. At least for Britain, it was no good for its allies to know too much.
At the beginning, the British had told everyone only that they would be facing the Holy Roman Empire alone; the other European countries had nothing to do with it at all.